Danny Garcia was a rising star a couple years ago, was knocking heads off shoulders, was winning fights he wasn’t supposed to. His rise has stabilized and there is not so much chatter for him to meet Floyd Mayweather, as there was earlier in 2014. He must beat stubborn vet Paul Malignaggi, the pugilistic pride of Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, NY to reclaim the momentum track he was on.

The Philly fighter will tangle with the New Yorker, coming back after a tough stoppage loss, and uncertain how much, perhaps, he has left in his tank, on August 1.

The scrap, to unfold at Barclays Center, the busiest big space for boxing in the nation now, along with Stub Hub, will also screen on ESPN, on primetime.

This is the second ESPN boxing show in their new two year deal, a “time buy situation” with Al Haymon, and Premier Boxing Champions. Haymon pays ESPN, quite handsomely, rumored to be more than $1 million per show, for the right to showcase his talent on their platform.

Garcia has been fighting at catchweights of late, in between 140 and 147, and drew massive scorn on the net for not defending his 140 pound crown for a long spell, while holding onto the bauble. He’s released that WBC title and will see how he feels at 147. Greeting him will be Malignaggi, who was set to come back against Danny O’Connor May 23, but got a cut eye, and this opportunity appeared instead. It is preferable, as the stakes and the payday are mucho higher. Lots of folks think Malignaggi will get rubbed out, judging by Twitter response, but this is one stubborn dude, boxing is in his blood, and his pride will allow him to do much better than those naysayers predict, I’m guessing…

“It’s going to be a great fight against Paulie on August 1st,” said Garcia. “I’m looking forward to getting in the ring again, in my fifth appearance at Barclays Center, and putting on a great show for the East Coast fans in attendance and the fans watching all over the world. By the end of the night, I will still be the undefeated Danny ‘Swift’ Garcia. To all of the fans that love me, I love you too. This is for you.”

“Although I have a ton of respect for Danny and his father Angel, both for what they’ve accomplished in the ring as well as the bond they share as father/son, I, like them, am a competitor through and through and in this sport it’s all about testing yourself against the elite. So I look forward to defending my home turf of Brooklyn and matching my skills against Danny’s at Barclays Center on August 1.”

“August 1 will mark Danny Garcia’s first fight as a true welterweight,” said Lou DiBella, President of DiBella Entertainment. “It’ll take place at Barclays Center, in the backyard of Brooklyn’s Paulie Malignaggi. This high quality PBC matchup on ESPN is a must-win situation for both fighters.”

“We are excited to host a third outstanding Premier Boxing Champions event and our first ESPN fight in Brooklyn,” said Barclays Center CEO Brett Yormark. “Danny Garcia always puts on a great show and there’s no bigger fan favorite in Brooklyn than Paulie Malignaggi. With this fight, we are continuing to establish Barclays Center as the premier boxing venue in the country.”

“This classic Philly versus New York match-up featuring two of boxing’s biggest stars is exactly why ESPN is televising Premier Boxing Champions,” said Brian Kweder, senior director of programming and acquisitions at ESPN. “Danny Garcia has laid waste to the junior welterweight division and instead of easing his way into the welterweight division, he’s fighting a former world champion in Paulie Malignaggi.”

Tickets for the live event, which is promoted by DiBella Entertainment, are priced at $250, $150, $75 and $45, not including applicable service charges and taxes, and are on sale Wednesday, June 17 at 10 a.m. Tickets are available at www.barclayscenter.com, www.ticketmaster.com and at the American Express Box Office at Barclays Center beginning Thursday, June 18 at noon. To charge by phone, call Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. For group tickets, please call 800-GROUP-BK.

In addition to the evening’s main event and co-main event, which will be announced shortly, select undercard bouts will be carried live on ESPN3. ESPN Deportes will also televise the fight live as part of its Noche de Combates series and ESPN International will present live coverage across its networks in Latin America, Brazil, the Caribbean and Pacific Rim. Live coverage will also be available through WatchESPN on computers, smartphones, tablets, Amazon Fire TV and Fire TV Stick, Apple TV, Chromecast, Roku, Xbox 360 and Xbox One via an affiliated video provider.

Now in his fourth year as a world champion, Philadelphia’s Garcia will return to headline at Barclays Center for a record fifth time. Garcia last fought in Brooklyn on April 11 defeating Lamont Peterson in a rousing 12 round majority decision. The 27-year-old has taken down some of the biggest names in boxing on his way to an undefeated record, including Amir Khan, Erik Morales, Lucas Matthysse and Zab Judah.

A former world champion at 140 and 147-pounds, the 34-year-old Malignaggi will return to the ring to fight at Barclays Center for the fourth time as a professional. He has faced a slew of big names throughout his career and has taken home victories over the likes of Zab Judah, Vyacheslav Senchenko and Pablo Cesar Cano. Born and raised in the Bensonhurst neighborhood of Brooklyn, “The Magic Man” will step into the ring for the first time since April 2014.

COMMENTS

-deepwater2 :

Interesting article from NY Post, Paulie's hometown paper. writer George Willis
Bruce Silverglade was there when Paulie Malignaggi walked through the doors of Gleason’s Gym more than 15 years ago and said he wanted to be a professional boxer. He was full of mouth, confidence and ambition, a street kid from Brooklyn using boxing as an escape from a life that could have gotten him arrested or killed.
“He started here in the amateurs,” Silverglade said this week as he watched Malignaggi go through a media workout at Gleason’s. “He was fast. He really never had a lot of power, but he was very fast and a smart fighter.”
“I think he should be retiring,” Silverglade said, adding, “He has won titles. He’s fought all around the world. I don’t think he’s going to recapture that. You can’t recapture youth. With age, you slow down, not only physically, but mentally. He’s at the point.”
Silverglade isn’t alone. I think Malignaggi should call it a career, too. Of course, I thought the same about Bernard Hopkins and Roy Jones years ago. Both are still fighting and commentating. But there is plenty of reason to be concerned about Malignaggi’s first fight since April 19, 2014.
He endured a beating that night, when he was stopped in the fourth round by Shawn Porter in Washington. Malignaggi was hospitalized that night with a hematoma near his left ear and he admitted to being dizzy days after the bout. He seriously considered retirement, but after six months he began going back to the gym and helping Brooklyn welterweights Sadam Ali and Luis Collazo prepare for their recent bouts.
“I still thirst for the competition,” Malignaggi said. “That’s the main reason I’m doing this.”
Still, it’s hard to read if Malignaggi is fully committed or just having trouble letting go. In addition to commentating for Showtime, he has taken advantage of a few acting opportunities and engages in a huge Twitter following.
“It challenges you more mentally in terms of being motivated to make sure you train with all your other responsibilities,” he said. “I still made the time to train no matter how busy I got.”
He talks about how winning a third world title would enhance his Hall of Fame credentials, but admits he’s recognized for being an announcer as much as a boxer these days, a career Silverglade hopes isn’t being jeopardized by his return to the ring.
“I think he’s doing well as a commentator,” Silverglade said. “If he continues to box and doesn’t do well, it will impact his commentating career. People like winners. They don’t want to see losers. More importantly people don’t want to see him get hurt physically or mentally. I think he’s at a point now where that should be a concern.”

-brownsugar :

Paulie is slowly slipping into the Roy Jones; self-denial syndrome..... But I guess breaking up is hard to do,...
If Garcia runs roughshod over Paulie like Porter did, I fear an intervention will be needed to save the man from himself.

-SouthPawFlo :

Even tho I know he's not, I want Paulie to Win....
Danny G has been getting gift decisions and favorable matchups since the Matthyse fight, I hope Paulie wins by controversial spilt decision

-Radam G :

Even tho I know he's not, I want Paulie to Win....
Danny G has been getting gift decisions and favorable matchups since the Matthyse fight, I hope Paulie wins by controversial spilt decision

Hehehe! This is one of those favorable match ups. Paulie can only win by kayo. And I doubt that is going to happen. If Paulie is not to jived up from the Showtime Shawn's whuppin,' he will definitely give no-so "Swift" Danny G a time. Holla!